Hyderabad: Telangana Rakshana Sena president Kalvakuntla Kavitha accused Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy of failing to prepare for the Telangana water crisis. She warned that the state could face severe water shortages over the next 10 months. According to her, farmers had struggled through successive crop seasons for three years because key Krishna river projects remained incomplete.
At a media briefing at the TRS office in Banjara Hills on Friday, Kavitha criticised the government’s response to El Niño. Experts had warned about the weather phenomenon earlier this year, she said. Moreover, Revanth Reddy himself acknowledged those warnings at a press conference on Thursday. The leader questioned why the government had not taken precautionary measures despite knowing about the risk months in advance.
Kavitha also accused the Chief Minister of failing to treat all sections of society equally. His remarks on constitutional values during a visit to Delhi drew further criticism. She alleged that his government followed anti-democratic practices in Telangana. In addition, the leader blamed the administration’s shortcomings for delays in completing irrigation projects.
Telangana water crisis: Kavitha questions delayed drought measures
Why, Kavitha asked, was the government still blaming its predecessor after 30 months in office? Neighbouring states had identified drought-hit areas in August and sent reports to the Centre, she said. By contrast, Telangana had delayed its response and was now asking farmers to make sacrifices, according to her.
The Telangana Rakshana Sena president challenged Revanth Reddy to sacrifice his political interests if he expected farmers to stop sowing crops. She argued that the government should have acted much earlier. Furthermore, Kavitha questioned the proposal to form a committee under Minister Seethakka. She asked how long officials would take to prepare a report and secure the Centre’s approvals.
Support for farm labourers formed another key part of Kavitha’s demands over the Telangana water crisis. She called for immediate implementation of the Congress election promise to provide them ₹12,000 annually. Meanwhile, she questioned how the government planned to support lakhs of agricultural workers during a drought. Kavitha also demanded life insurance coverage for all farm labourers in the state.
Kavitha raises allegations over Yadadri power plant
The Congress government is attempting to privatise the Yadadri Thermal Power Plant, Kavitha alleged. According to her, the government issued an order on the matter last month. She demanded an explanation for the reported move and questioned the government’s agreement with Power Mech Projects.
Allegations of corruption also featured in her criticism of the arrangement. Rather than addressing water shortages and farmers’ problems, she claimed, the government was focusing on financial irregularities. Kavitha sought answers about the agreement and the reasons behind the reported privatisation proposal.